Faith

A new food vendor at the Friday night car shows in downtown North St. Paul quickly caught the attention of locals. Who was serving barbeque off a patio grill at a former eatery? And what were the donations going toward?
Before most people had time to get acquainted, the unlicensed vendor was shut down, simply unaware they were breaking any rules.

On Sept. 20, a local church congregation will celebrate its golden anniversary. Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in Shoreview is about to turn the big 5-0.
The first ever Shepherd of the Hills service was held on Sept. 19, 1965 at Island Lake School. 154 people attended this inaugural service. Fast-forward 50 years and the church is still going strong.

Let’s see, what am I going to do today? Whether we think about it consciously or not, we probably do have the question. The little child may say, “Mommy, I’m hungry.” The older person may just do what he or she wants to do without saying anything. At ages 78 and 84, my dear wife and I do things by habit or by planning. Whatever and however we do it there is value in thinking about and having a plan. And of course this is always subject to change.

It can be fun to think back over life. If we remember back, as best we can, our schedules can amaze us. Older folk often do a little reminiscing over a cup of coffee or whatever. The older we are the more likely we grew up on a farm or in a small town. The changes vary but certain pathways are similar. Whatever the pathway, certain elements were always present. The road went from childhood to adolescence to adulthood to middle age to senior citizen.

Incarnation Lutheran Church in Shoreview is holding its fourth annual food drive to benefit the Ralph Reeder Food Shelf and this year, invites the local community to join in the drive to help aide those who are food insecure during the most diffic

Incarnation Lutheran Church in Shoreview is embarking on its fourth annual food drive to benefit the Ralph Reeder Food Shelf and this year, invites the local community to join in the drive to help aide those who are food insecure during the most d

The 2014-2015 school year is history. This means that some parents will need childcare for their young school children. Let’s suppose that one set of parents has two children. One just finished kindergarten and the other second grade. They can no longer take the bus or be dropped off at school for the day. Both finances and time may be a factor with this family. Somebody needs to be with them. Ten years down the road the whole picture will change. Larger families have more hurdles. We have known a couple of families who have taken in abandoned street children. If you go down to the Union Gospel Mission or some of the other safe houses, you can get a real feel for their situations.

Some older people read a lot. Others like to sit around and visit with other old folk. We see some who walk an hour or two each morning in the Maplewood Mall or outside. With old age generally comes more flexibility. Some of these people in their 60s, 70s and even 80s can give us really good ideas.

Recently, Norma and I were at a memorial service for a very dear friend who was 90 years old. He was a retired science teacher from Century College. He was listed as being active in his church, the Science Museum of Minnesota, the Union Gospel Mission, St. John’s Hospital and The Gideons International. The Union Gospel Mission Ministry Center was the perfect place to remember Gerald.